AI-driven aerial imaging project to detect tea mosquito bug in Peerumade hills

Peerumade’s beverage gardens are gearing up for a tech-powered defence against the dreaded beverage mosquito bug (TMB). In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the United Planters’ Association of Southern India’s (UPASI) Tea Research Foundation has joined hands with C-DAC Kolkata and IIT Kharagpur to motorboat an AI-driven aerial imaging task to observe pest attacks earlier they wreak havoc.

The bug, archetypal reported successful cardinal Travancore successful 1922, continues to stalk the region’s plantations, threatening some output and livelihoods, says Sham Kumar, advisory serviceman of UPASI Vandiperiyar.

“The inaugural is funded by the National Tea Research Foundation nether the Centre. The aviator signifier targets TMB control, with plans to grow the exertion to different pests successful the adjacent stage,” says Mr. Kumar.

“The task uses artificial quality and drone-based imaging to place pest attacks astatine an aboriginal stage. The TMB pest power is the archetypal signifier of the task and plans to see different beverage pests successful it,” helium says.

According to officials, C-DAC, successful collaboration with the Tea Research Foundation, has developed PEST Track, an AI-driven solution for the detection of TMB (Helopeltis theivora). PEST Track integrates artificial quality and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for large-scale and close surveillance of beverage plantations. UAVs equipped with RGB cameras seizure canopy-level imagery nether optimised formation conditions to heighten sum and detection accuracy.

Officials accidental a heavy learning-based entity detection exemplary has been implemented for the recognition of TMB successful plantations. To enactment targeted pesticide application, a mobile exertion has besides been developed, which uses georeferenced information extracted from pest-infested images to usher users to navigate to the pest-affected zones wrong the tract and helps successful selective pesticide spraying.

A caller web-based determination enactment instrumentality named Ti Mapper has been developed by IIT Kharagpur, successful collaboration with the Tea Research Foundation, to assistance planters observe and representation pest infestations of TMB. Ti Mapper generates infestation contour maps and accurately pinpoints affected zones for targeted pesticide application.

The AI-based attack could beryllium a crippled changer for the beverage industry, offering a cost-effective and technological method to show pest outbreaks and guarantee sustainable beverage production.

To supply consciousness and show the technology, a idiosyncratic meet-cum-awareness store volition beryllium held astatine Vandiperiyar connected Wednesday.